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Re-covering the console lid and steering wheel


colinnwn
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My center console lid vinyl is starting to crack. I was ready to just pay the $130 for a new one, until I realized I'm burning 1 qt of oil per 1000 miles, which reminded me she won't last forever.

 

The lid doesn't look re-coverable. But has anyone been able to do it, or come up with another creative solution?

 

Also my steering wheel leather at the top is deteriorating. Has any taken their truck to a reupholsterer to get their wheel rewrapped, and was satisfied with the results? I've tried a bunch of store wheel covers on my old Scout and I hated them all.

 

Sent from my FRD-L04 using Tapatalk

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If you have a local junk yard or a pull a part,that would be the place to go to find a console and a steering wheel that would be in good enough shape to restore.

 

Sent from my Z836BL using Tapatalk

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I've replaced the leather on my center console with one off eBay and fitment was actually good. I needed to trim some of the leather because I couldn't get it to tuck or flatten enough in some places when reassembling. Pretty easy to do with a Phillips, and I think I used a little hot glue to keep it from slipping around. That was a few years ago, and it's held up very well considering my kids constantly stepping on the console to go between front and rear seats.

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  • 2 weeks later...
  • 3 months later...

I bought one of the console covers off Amazon, and tried to replace it, but it has been a disaster.

 

I bought one the description said was synthetic, because I read real leather was thicker and harder to get it to look nice, though I'd prefer real leather. When it arrived the description was wrong, it was real leather. It is about 1/4 inch too short in the long direction to fold over the edges good. The cut also isn't great. It bulges on the front sides unless pulled very tight.

 

I got scotch double sided tape to see if I could get it on OK, and the plastic frame back in. The leather back doesn't stick to the scotch tape, it pops back up in seconds. The thick seams don't stay down at all. The factory double sided tape was fiberous rather than plastic, and seemed slightly gummy. I'm going to see if I can find something more similar to that.

 

And I'll probably have to get the vinyl cover instead of leather to get it to look half decent. If this doesn't work out, I'm going to try to find a car upholstery place to fix it.

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Quart/1k... reminds me of my dad's R50.

 

+1 for hitting the wreckers. And if you're willing to fit a universal top, you might as well check out the consoles in other rigs at the wreckers. You may find something close enough to use, either by wrapping its skin over your existing lid or by swapping it out entirely. When I needed a cover for my console (a 50 cal ammo can), I just went to the wreckers with a friend and the lid off the ammo can and checked each car for a proper console. 80s Trans Am fit great, but was trashed. Ford Explorer was close but no cigar. I ended up with the lid off a Lexus ES300, which, once the latch and inner beauty cap are gone and a little plastic is trimmed back, fits a 50 cal can surprisingly well. Not quite made for it, but it fits tight enough to stay put and it doesn't clash with the seats. Oh, yeah, and it only cost $5!

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I got my console covered using the skin I had bought already. Looking at other options on Amazon, it seems they are all about the same. And possibly it is synthetic leather. It smells like leather, and the back has that suede look of real leather instead of fabric mesh of old style leather looking vinyl. But it looks synthetic leather has advanced to the point it is hard to tell the difference.

 

It still has a bulge on the front left corner because of a poor cut/stitch job, but it isn't too bad. And the long direction was too short leaving very little for the back seam to catch and hold against the tape.

 

The secret is getting some 1/4" wide leather basting tape. The leather does stick well to that. Combined with me not pulling it as tight, and giving up on smoothing out that bulge, it looks pretty good now installed. The plastic top insert flexed enough that it squeezed in and I was able to screw it together without feeling like I was going to crack it.

 

Overall I'd do it again, with another brand of cover from Amazon (I saw about 5 different brands), and now that I know about basting tape.

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